Ray of Hope
by AkaraUsagi
Summary: HIATUS. Stupid writer's block for this one. After Kikyo seals the well and Naraku is defeated, the group journeys to find Kikyo. Kagome realizes that she can no longer hold onto Inuyasha,leaves on her own journey, and she finds love with the person you'd
1. Chapter 1

Ray of Hope

by: AkaraUsagi

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha. If I did, I would not be writing fanfics. But anyways. On with it.**

**P.S... This is a Sess x Kag fic. Just because I 3 Sesshy!**

"Inuyasha, do you want ramen?" Kagome asked needlessly. She knew he would. She had been traveling with the hanyou for three years now, and she knew him better than he knew himself. Inuyasha immediatly dropped from his perch in the God's tree and made his way over to Kagome, grabbing the bowl of ramen from her and ravishing it until it was gone. Kagome smiled. _There's no one quite like him. I... I know I love him. _Kagome's thoughts were interrupted by Inuyasha's voice.

"Oi! Kagome!" he called. Kagome's head snapped over to look at him.

"What?" she asked calmly.

"We're setting out now to go shard hunting." he turned and began to put the fire out. He knew that he was lying. Everyone knew that he was lying. Their was only three shards left- the two with Kouga, and the one with Kohaku. What he really meant was that they were going to search for Kikyo, who had disappeared after Naraku's death. Kagome knew this as well. Kagome sighed and looked at her watch.

"Inuyasha, it's six in the morning! I was hoping to leave a little later." she complained. Inuyasha turned his nose up at her.

"Keh! As if, wench! You've had enough rest!" Inuyasha spat. Kagome sighed. _He's become more and more bitter in the past few weeks. Ever since Naraku died and Kikyo dissapeared. I mean, I understand that he's worried about Kikyo... but... he's becoming more and more distant from our group. He doesn't speak to Shippou at all, he exchanges brief phrases with Miroku and Sango, and with me... with me he doesn't talk much either. _Kagome sighed.

"Alright, Inuyasha. Don't worry. I'll gather our things. Then we'll go out in search for _her_." she replied, knowing that Kikyo was the reason for their early departure. Inuyasha lowered his head.

"Keh! Then _hurry up_!" he growled. Sango came over and put an arm around her best friend.

"It's okay, Kagome. I'm sure things will turn out alright." she reassured. Kagome laughed.

_I hope Sango's right. Just before Naraku's death, the well sealed over. That was thanks to Kikyo. She decided that I should stay in my own era... but she made the mistake of thinking I was home, and sealed it while I was still in the feudal era. I haven't seen my family for two months now... and I never will again. I know now that Inuyasha will never love me the way I love him... but I still can't help how I feel_. Kagome grabbed her yellow backpack and followed Inuyasha's lead.

"Where are we travelling to today?" Kagome asked Inuyasha. He smirked.

"There's a village in the Eastern Lands that claims to have a powerful miko aiding them. That's where we are going." Inuyasha explained. Kagome frowned. _The least he could do is ask us how we feel about it..._

"Alright." Kagome replied gently, attempting to push her emotions deep down inside of her. Inuyasha sniffed the air and caught a slight scent of salt coming from Kagome. Kagome scolded herself for allowing that single tear to fall.

"Oi, what's your problem now?" Inuyasha complained. Kagome was finally at the end of her thread.

"Inuyasha! Baka! Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT, SIT, SIT!" she cried. Satisfied that he was now planted a good four feet into the dirt, Kagome walked right over him and kept on going.

"Wh-thwat wath that fow!" Inuyasha hollared.

"Spit the dirt out, then speak, you baka!" Kagome cried in annoyance. Inuyasha spat out the dirt and ran up to Kagome.

"I said, WHAT WAS THAT FOR! You were the one CRYING!" he yelled. Kagome couldn't help it. She finally let her tears fall free.

"How DARE you blame this on me! You make us get up early to go searching for Kikyo without even asking how _we_ feel about it!" Kagome cried. Inuyasha's ears flattened down on his head.

"What?" he asked. He was too shocked to say much else. Kagome walked up to him defiantely and stared him down.

"You heard me! You don't even care about how _we_ feel about all of this! You don't even _care_! You never once asked us if we even wanted to go with you! You never asked _me_ once how I felt about the whole thing!" Kagome screamed, hoping to cause permanent damage in his ears. Inuyasha cringed at the pitch of her voice.

"Well you never said anything!" Inuyasha defended. Kagome stomped off into the forest.

"Whatever, Inuyasha! Have it your way!" she yelled. Inuyasha sighed with annoyance.

"Let's just go, alright?" he said. The group simply nodded their heads and followed the angry hanyou and the heartbroken miko. Sango put an arm around Kagome.

"It'll be fine, Kagome. He'll come around eventually and realize his true feelings for you."

"Thanks, Sango. It means a lot to me that you try so hard to cheer me up." Kagome smiled. She was truly grateful to have a friend like Sango. Sango smiled.

"Anytime!" she laughed. Kagome frowned slightly. _This is going to be a long day... _Kagome looked up at the rising sun. _Yep... a really long day._ Kagome's face stiffened with anxiety. _I wish we could stop chasing after Kikyo... I just... I just wish I could tell Inuyasha how I feel..._ Inuyasha looked at Kagome, who was currently staring off into space.

"Oi, Kagome! What are you doing?" he asked. She forced a smile so as not to show Inuyasha how much he was hurting her.

"Nothing, Inuyasha. Nothing at all." she said sweetly. Inuyasha could tell that she was lying, but for once he decided _not_ to press the issue- he'd already been sat several times, and didn't need to go through it again. Inuyasha frowned. _What's wrong with her? She's never complained before. So why now? She's only travelling with us to detect when Kohaku or Kouga are near. It's not like she wants to stay with us after we get the remaining shards. At least, I don't think she wants to stay. Why would she stay with us? Miroku's no good, Shippou's annoying, and she practically hates me. Sango is her best friend, but I can't imagine Kagome staying just for Sango. Even if she can't go home, she'll probably just settle down in Kaede's village._ Inuyasha smiled inwardly. _Yeah. It'll all work out! We'll find Kikyo, Kagome gets to live in the village, Kikyo and me can travel as youkai exterminators... yeah! Everything's gonna be great! Still... why is Kagome so angry and sad?_

_...Is it because of Kikyo? Or me?_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Inuyasha? Can we rest for just a little while? We've been walking for _hours_!" Kagome complained. She was used to riding on Inuyasha's back, but as of lately he wouldn't dare bother to carry her. He was always afraid Kikyo would show up and think that he was in love with Kagome and not her. Kirara couldn't hold all of them, so they had to walk. Inuyasha scoffed at Kagome's 'weakness'.

"Keh! Useless as usual! We haven't been walking for _that_ long!" he yelled. Kagome was furious by this point.

"Inuyasha! We have been walking for at LEAST eight straight hours! That may not be long to you, but it is to us! Can you imagine walking this far on one of your human nights?" she screamed. Inuyasha had never really thought about it. He knew that as a human it would be impossible for him to continue on that long, and he was still stronger than the rest of them. Even so, he would not relent.

"Of course I would be able to! I ain't a weakling like you!" he scowled. Kagome tried her best to not cry. It hurt her so much when Inuyasha insulted her. "You're pathetic! You're useless! You're _worthless_! You spend all of your time droning on and on about how we need to rest! Just suck it up!" he continued. Kagome was no longer able to hold back the tears. _He called me pathetic... useless... and... and worthless. Am I worthless? Maybe... maybe I am... _Tears fell freely down to the soft soil path.

Inuyasha sniffed the air and smelt salt taint the air. He turned his nose up at her and sighed. _Kagome... I don't want to be so hard on you... but... I can't continue to be your friend. I can't come to rescue you all the time. I can't carry you. I can't show any sort of friendship to you... Kikyo will leave me again... and I don't want that. I'm sorry Kagome... I'm sorry._

"I-is that what y-you think of m-me?" Kagome stuttered, trying to dry her tears away. Inuyasha glanced only briefly at Kagome, but the sight broke his heart. The woman who had been so kind to him; the woman who had befriended him when no other person would... she was crying. She looked at him with such hurt in her eyes. Inuyasha had noticed that a constant pain and sadness was always looming in her eyes; growing ever larger every time he pushed her away. His face softened at the sight of hers. She had been the only one able to change him back to a hanyou when Tetsaiga didn't work. That battle, too... the battle inside the Oni's stomach... she risked her life for him, like she had so many times before. She ran into a pool of acid just to help turn him back so that he could fight properly. Her ankles were burned and were bandaged and useless for a few months... yet she had said that she was happy in that moment. She was happy to have fought beside Inuyasha. She was glad to have him around. Inuyasha closed his eyes; his inward struggle was taking him over. _I don't want to hurt her... I don't want to be the one that causes her to be so sad... but... Kikyo... well... Kikyo's not here now... so I guess I could just be a little comforting._ Inuyasha reached out towards Kagome and drew her into a hug. She flailed her arms and tried to kick him away, but it was useless.

"Kagome... that's not what I think of you..." Inuyasha whispered. Kagome looked up at him with a fierce anger in her eyes.

"Then why did you say all of those things?" she pushed. Inuyasha sighed as his ears twitched about the crown of his head.

"I was... I was angry. I don't know... I don't know why. I'm just on edge a lot lately, you know? I just can't-" Inuyasha began to explain before Kagome cut him off.

"Spare me, Inuyasha! You're all stressed out about Kikyo! You don't care about the rest of us. So why bother, hmm? Kikyo can find the damn shards too! So why not just leave us all here to rot, Inuyasha? Do you like seeing me cry? Do you like making my life miserable? Do you like ripping my heart into shreds?" she yelled accusingly before her eyes widened. _Did I just mention my heart? Oh, no..._

"Your heart into shreds? What are talking about?" Inuyasha asked. _She doesn't think about me that way, does she? She can't... can she?_ Kagome, meanwhile, was attempting to make a graceful recovery from her slip-up.

"Uh... um, what I mean is that you were my best friend, and you're pushing my away. It tears up my heart to lose my best friend." she said quickly. _Phew! I hope he buys that..._ Apparently Inuyasha didn't seem to notice. He bought the phony answer and kept on talking.

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I'm sorry that you feel that way. I promise i'll try to be more like my old self, okay?" Inuyasha faked a smile, which Kagome caught immediately. _He's faking a smile... oh, well. What choice do I have?_ Kagome sighed.

"Whatever, Inuyasha. Just do what you want, alright?" she spat as she walked on past him, pushing him to the side. Inuyasha frowned. _She hates me... well, no surprise there. I have been pushing her away. I can't just expect to her to forgive me so easily._

"Kagome... i'll try to make it up to you..." he pleaded. Not even bothering to turn her head around to look at him, she replied angrily.

"Don't even bother, Inuyasha! Just... just... let's just go, okay? Can we not talk about this anymore? You know, pretend it never happened?" she cried. Inuyasha hung his head low.

"Alright." he consented. The group continued albeit their tiredness.

A few hours and a couple slaps for Miroku later, the group arrived at a small village that was on the way to the group's destination. Inuyasha, still feeling horrible for saying all of those things to Kagome, allowed the group to rest for the night. Kagome flopped down onto the bed grinning. Ever since the well was sealed over, she had missed the feeling of a real bed.

Late that night, once everyone had turned in, Kagome lay awak in her bed; her thoughts keeping her from sleep. Kagome tossed over to her side. _My family... I miss them so much... I wonder... do they ever worry about me? Do they ever wonder why I never returned? Did they think I died? Or do they know somehow that the well was sealed? I wonder how they feel about me not being there anymore... _Kagome shivered under the blanket. The air was chill and the hut that they stayed in wasn't very well insulated. Without warning, someone draped something over Kagome's shivering form. She blinked a few times before recognizing the person in front of her.

"What is it, Inuyasha?" she asked before she looked down at herself and realized that he had given her his haori for warmth. She smiled slightly. "Oh. Um... thanks..." she mumbled. Inuyasha sat down on the edge of her bed; his ears flicking about, listening for any threatening noises.

"Kagome... I... i'm really sorry..." he apologized. Kagome smiled.

"It's okay, Inuyasha. I understand why you're acting the way you are. I don't deny that it hurts, but i'll be fine." Kagome confessed. Inuyasha cocked an eyebrow, seemingly confused.

"You... you know why i'm acting like this?" he said shocked.

"Yeah. You don't want Kikyo to see us together and get the wrong idea. You don't want to lose her again... and I understand that, Inuyasha... but you have to realize something. It's not me OR her. Why can't we still be friends?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha frowned.

"Kikyo grew up in a strict environment. Men and women cannot simply mingle unless they are courting or married." Inuyasha replied. Kagome frowned.

"Oh... I... I see. So... so we can't even be friends..." she began. "Then... I hope that you can somehow understand that i'll be angry and distant for a while. I don't want to lose you just as much as you don't want to lose Kikyo, Inuyasha. You mean so much to me, you know? We've been through everything together. I don't want to have to let you go... but... at the same time... I just want you to be happy. I want you to be able to live the way that you want to. So i'll be alright. As long as you live happily, I can move on... I think..." she trailed off.

"Kagome..." Inuyasha started.

"Inuyasha, it's fine. You don't have to say anything. I understand that you can't say anything. You can't say anything because of the psoition you're in. One one side stands Kikyo, a powerful miko who loves you deeply. On the other side stands me. A poor excuse for a miko... but who..." Kagome trailed off. _I can't... I can't tell him that I love him..._ Kagome lied instead. "...who wants nothing more than to see you happy. Who wants nothing more than a friendship with you. Who will never ask you to change who you are... just to make someone else happy..." she sobbed. Without warning, Inuyasha threw his arms around her; his hand patting her back to calm her down. For the rest of the night Inuyasha held onto Kagome to calm her as she cried. _Maybe things will be okay..._ Kagome thought.

_Maybe..._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The group awoke early, refreshed and ready to head out. Once on the road, they continued to head east towards the village rumored to have a powerful miko aiding them. Inuyasha was a bundle of nerves that day. He could not wait to see if the woman he had heard so much about was, in fact, Kikyo. He tried to prepare himself for the worst, but to no such luck. He would grin wildly, but only when no one was looking. Still, Kagome could sense that he was excited and nervous at the same time. She smiled on the outside, but inwardly, she was breaking. With every beat of her heart, she was slowly drifting away into nothingness. She needed something, anything, to hold on to, and Inuyasha could no longer be that for her. She walked in silence for most of the trip, only talking every now and then to Sango. Sango had noted the steady decline in Kagome's mood. She knew when her best friend was lying, and she could tell that Kagome was putting on a false exterior for Inuyasha.

Inuyasha, being as dense as he normally was, didn't really seem to notice. All he cared about was Kikyo. He took a deep breath in and sniffed the air. _We're not that far away now... hang on Kikyo! I know that you're there! I'm coming for you!_ Inuyasha darted forward and raced out of sight. Kagome sighed.

"We must be nearing that village. He can probably smell it."

"Kagome..." Sango sympathized as she hugged her best friend. "Everything is going to work out just fine, alright? I'm still here to help you through this." she said. Miroku nodded.

"Lady Kagome, I am here as well. I swear on my life that Sango and I shall help you through this." he smiled. Kagome chuckled and wiped away a few stray tears that had made it through her barriers.

"Thanks, you guys..."

--------------------------------

Kagome had cheered up with a little bit of help from Sango and Miroku. Shippou had nestled himself in her arms and fallen asleep just as Kirara had on Sango. They could all see a small village up ahead, and Kagome frowned.

"Inuyasha must already be here..." she whispered.

"Don't worry, Kagome. Remember? We'll help you." Sango promised. Kagome nodded and took a deep breath.

"Here we go." she said as they entered the tiny village. Kagome looked around and scanned the village for Inuyasha. "Where's Inuyasha?" she asked. The rest of the group shrugged and decided to split up in their search for him. Sango and Kirara left to go ask within the huts, Miroku and Shippou had gone to ask the farmers, leaving Kagome to search the nearby forest and well area.

"Kikyo... it... it's been so long..." Kagome's eyes widened. _That... that's Inuyasha's voice... he found her..._

"It has. Why do you seek me, Inuyasha?" a stoic Kikyo spat at the drooping hanyou.

"I came to bring you home. Kikyo, Naraku is dead! Come live with me. I... I love you, Kikyo. I want things to be the way they were before... before all of this." Inuyasha's ears flattened. Kikyo's stoic frown turned into a bit of a smile.

"You came all this way just to... just to see me?" she asked.

"Yes."

"You love me? Truly?"

"More than anything else in my life." Inuyasha vowed. Kagome knew what Kikyo was doing. Kikyo knew that she was there, and tried to cause as much pain to Kagome as possible. Even so, Kikyo could not be acting completely- a part of her really did love and miss Inuyasha. Kagome shook her head. _She does want to be with him... she loves him... she's not perfect... but she loves him... just like I do..._ Kagome continued to stay silent behind the tall tree.

"Inuyasha... what about..."

"What about what?"

"The ones you travel with?" she asked timidly. Inuyasha took Kikyo into his arms and shook his head.

"I don't care about them! I want _you_!" he cried. Kagome stifled a gasp as she heard these words. _I always knew that this was how he felt, but... hearing him say it out loud... it hurts so much..._

"Truly?

"Kikyo... i'll never let anything happen to you ever again! I promise that I will protect you!" he sobbed as he nuzzled the crook of her neck. Kagome held back the tears that she knew would come. _That... that's the promise he made **me**._ She shook with anger and panic as she heard his mouth emit those foul words. Those seven words that he had once said to her- _I promist that I will protect you_... Kagome's rage and sadness took over her finally. So long had she bottled up her feelings and emotions. Kikyo noticed how unstable the young miko was, and simply smirked. _All's fair in love and war..._ Kikyo thought to herself. Kagome, as if reading her mind, fell to the ground silently. Thank kami that Inuyasha was too busy to notice that she was there, otherwise she'd have been dead. Kagome had kept up a good cover so far; she didn't want to blow it.

_Splish._

Kagome's eyes opened wide in shock as she saw the wet grass below her. She had let a tear fall. Inuyasha immediately picked up on the smell of salt in the air, and along with it, Kagome's scent. Kagome emerged from behind the tree; tears were now evident on her face.

"Kagome..." he choked. Kikyo held a firm grip on Inuyasha as he did on her. Kagome's fists balled together so tight that the knuckles turned white.

"Y-you..." she gritted her teeth. Inuyasha's ears pinned back as he heard the harsh tone of her voice.

"Kagome?"

"Y-you promised m-me... y-you made that p-promise to m-me." Kagome pointed an accusing finger at Inuyasha; her hand was still shaking. "How could y-you give h-her that pro-promise? I don't m-mean anyth-thing to you, d-do I?"

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha panicked.

"Y-you promised t-to protect h-her! Th-that was the same... the same pr-promise you gave m-me! Y-you lied! Y-you said... you said I didn't m-matter... th-that you d-didn't care a-about m-me!" Kagome stuttered as she began to step backwards; further into the woods.

"Kagome...?" Inuyasha looked at her with concern. _Did I really mean those words? I did... but... Kagome... she looks like she might break..._ "Kagome where are you going?" Inuyasha called as Kagome kept walking backwards. Kagome's body shook violently with sobs and with anger.

"Aw-away from y-you!"

"Kagome!" Inuyasha pleaded as he walked towards her.

"St-stay away fr-from me! Get AWAY!" she cried as her body pulsed and sent forth a shining pink energy that knocked Kikyo and Inuyasha onto their knees.

Kagome had been running for hours and hours; anything to get away from Inuyasha. Inuyasha had given up going after her, especially after she had renderd him and Kikyo unconscious with that strange light. _What was that? What... what did I do?_ Kagome ran and ran until she couldn't anymore. She sat down near a tree and closed her eyes when she felt the presence of a powerful youkai. Her body set ablaze, ready to emit the energy again. _What is this power?_ She thought. She couldn't seem to open her eyes to see the youkai as her body pulsed again and let forth the wave of pink light. With every ounce of her energy drained, her body collapsed. The last thing that she saw and heard before blacking out was a pair of golden eyes, and:

"Hmph. Worthless human. Your powers cannot work on me."


	4. Chapter 4

**HEY! Sorry it's taken so long! It's my grad year and i've been so busy >. ;**

Chapter 4

"Where is she!" Inuyasha cursed as he hacked through the foliage in the forest. Kikyo shook her head.

"Just forget about her Inuyasha. I'm here now. You don't need her and she doesn't need you." Kikyo spat. Inuyasha pinned his ears to the crown of his head.

"Kikyo..."

"You're always saying yourself how much of a burden she is! You always have to watch out for her! Be glad that you don't have to do that anymore!" Kikyo cried in a surprising burst of emotion.

"How can you of all people say that? She is your reincarnation after all." Inuyasha pointed out.

"You know that we are both very different people, Inuyasha. We only have two things in common. Our soul, and..." Kikyo trailed off. Inuyasha's face contorted in confusion.

"And what?"

"We both feel the same... about something." she replied, not wanting to tell Inuyasha the full truth. She would not admit it but it scared her that Inuyasha might leave her for Kagome.

"About what?" Inuyasha asked, completely oblivious. Kikyo chuckled.

"Nothing important, Inuyasha. Let's go home." Kikyo smiled. Inuyasha held onto her tightly, enjoying the feeling of her being in his arms again, but slowly breaking on the inside. _What have I done? Kagome... I will find you some day... Don't forget about me... I promised I would protect you... and I meant it._

--------------------------

The first thing that Kagome noticed as she awoke was the immense throbbing pain in her head. _What happened?_ She thought. Rubbing her head Kagome turned over, only to have her face impact with matted fur. Her eyes snapped open and she sat upright. _Where am I?_ She looked around the room. Not much, really. In fact, it wasn't even a room- it was a cell. The doors were barred and locked shut. The cot that Kagome had been laying on was old and musty; the pillows and blankets were made of matted and useless furs.The torches that lit the hallway outside of the cell were dim and scarce, and the food that she had received wasn't what she thought to be appetizing- raw rabbit. Kagome turned her nose up at the stench of the cell and buried her head in arms. She remembered the strange pink light that she had used against Inuyasha and Kikyo, and again on that demon. _That's it!_ Kagome remembered the golden eyes, somewhat similar to Inuyasha's before she blacked out. She could somewhat remember what the youkai had said to her, something about her powers not working on him. Piecing two and two together Kagome figured that she must've run into Sesshoumaru, Taiyoukai of the Western Lands, and half-brother to Inuyasha. _What luck! I run into Inuyasha's half brother who hates humans. What a day..._

"Who's makin' all the noise?" a rather old and dirty inuyoukai growled. Kagome slid back into her cot to avoid any confrontation. "Heh. I figured it'd be you. It's always you humans. Get up wench. The Lord wishes to see you before deciding your sentence." Kagome gulped. _Sentence? I'm going to die, aren't I?_ Kagome lifted herself up and and hobbled over to the cell door.

"Yer ankle can't hurt that much, human!" the inuyoukai growled as he took his club and thrashed it against her ankle, creating a shattering noise. "Feh, you humans are too easy to break." Kagome slid onto the floor with a now broken ankle. This time a whip cracked at her bare back. _Wait a minute! BARE back?_ Kagome looked at herself. _Why didn't I notice this before?_ Her clothes had been removed and now she sat there, naked and bruised. Kagome yelped at the sting of the whip. After several more minutes of abuse the inuyoukai dropped a dusty, stained kimono in front of her. "Put it on and make yerself presentable to Lord Sesshoumaru! Walk straight and stand on yer own two feet, wench!" Kagome cringed at the name and quickly covered herself with the Kimono. _What will happen to me?_

"Lord Sesshoumaru, i've brought the girl you wanted." The inuyoukai growled and threw her to the ground at Sesshoumaru's feet.

"That will be all. Please leave." The inuyoukai bowed and left the room, closing the door behind him. Kagome lifted herself up with her hands and look up at Sesshoumaru with tear-stained cheeks.

"Wh-what is going t-to hap-ppen to m-me?" she asked shakily. Sesshoumaru growled.

"Filthy human, can't even speak properly." he knelt down and looked into her eyes. "Such a waste; you can't even take care of yourself." Kagome looked at him with rage.

"I can too take care of myself! I'm all for taking care of myself but it's hard when you have a broken ankle, a bleeding back, and an empty stomach!" she yelled. The taiyoukai back off in surprise. This human was _yelling_ at him! How dare she! She would know her place. Sesshoumaru was about to backhand her for her insolence when he noticed the twisted shape of her ankle and the stench of the heavy blood that stained the kimono. He pulled his hand back and growled. He couldn't stand the stench of human blood... but hers smelt different. Almost as if she wasn't...human...

"You will _not_ be tolerated if you continue with your insolence, woman. Know your place!" he bellowed. Kagome swallowed hard. _I'm going to die anyways, so I might as well._

"Look here, Sesshoumaru. I _know_ my place and it is not at _your_ feet. In my world women are equal and dogs like you lay at their master's feet! Not the other way around!" Sesshoumaru grabbed the collar of her kimono and pulled her so close to his face that she could feel his breath on her skin.

"I _am_ the Master! You would do well to remember that." he dropped her to the floor angrily. Kagome wasn't finished.

"Hey, pup! Try saying that in 500 years; when _my_ time is. You'll get killed for it!" Sesshoumaru turned around.

"YOU WILL REFER TO ME AS SESSHOUMARU-SA... what? You are not from this time?" he cocked his head.

"Obviously not! Why else do you think i'd be so different? I fell through a well on my family shrine and now because of Kikyo sealing it over I can't get back!" Kagome bit her lip. _Oh kami! I just let him know how I get through the well! This isn't good!_

"I have no business with the jewel." he replied as if reading her mind. "My business right now is _you_. Why did you attack me? Answer honestly and I might let you have a painless death." Kagome shuddered. _I'm going to die, so I might as well tell the truth_.

"I... I had a fight with Inuyasha. He brought Kikyo back... he loves her. I thought I loved him but I don't. I feel nothing for him now. I was running from him to but I ran into you and didn't know it was you and tried to attack you so I could get safelyaway and i'm sorry I did it I didn't know it was you so please forgive me I just wanted to go away." Sesshoumaru's ears somehow managed to pick up the frantic and speedy words of the girl. His face taught, he spoke with a growl.

"I have decided your sentence."


End file.
